2019 NBA Mock Draft: A crazy lottery throws everything into question
66. . F/C. Gonzaga. Brandon Clarke. 6. player
Six may seem high for Clarke, but not if you consider his ties to Phoenix. He flew under the radar after initially signing at San Jose State and playing two years there, but before all that, Clarke attended Desert Vista High School, just southeast of the Suns’ arena.
“I try not to dwell on it too much,” he said. “Obviously, I grew up watching them, they were pretty much my favorite team growing up. I’ve kind of thought about it … anything’s possible.”
His fit with Deandre Ayton is even more exciting than where he grew up. Clarke’s intelligence as a defender and weakside rim protection ability would quickly remind many of the combo of Amar’e Stoudemire and Shawn Marion during the Seven Seconds or Less days under Mike D’Antoni and Steve Nash.
Though Clarke measured poorly at just 207 pounds and with a 6-foot-8 wingspan, teams were never going to be drafting him for his physical tools. Rather, it’s Clarke’s athleticism (he had the highest vertical jump of any frontcourt player at the combine) and smarts that put him on NBA radars and will make him a good NBA player.
To truly make a difference in the NBA, one would expect Clarke will have to improve his jump shot. He started to reconstruct it during a transfer redshirt year as a junior and improved from sophomore to senior season as a result. However, the NBA 3 is a different beast, and Clarke will have an opportunity to show he can make them in private workouts.